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Although it is not necessarily new news that (a) autism rarely exists in some sort of diagnostic vacuum, and (b) that some of the comorbidity 'over-represented' when it comes to autism can actually be more disabling than autism itself, there are still more investigations to be done.The paper by Vicki Bitsika & Christopher Sharpley [1] represents an example of how autism science is starting to go past the whole 'is there a connection between...' bit when it comes to autism and various comorbi........ Read more »

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I wanted to briefly talk about the paper by Francesca Garofoli and colleagues [1] on congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection and autism not because it contains any novel data (see here), but because it reminds us that the potential 'pathways' to a diagnosis of autism are multiple and not necessarily 'pre-programmed' as per the 'it's all genetic' arguments that frequently figure in various domains.Congenital CMV infection refers to the transmission of CMV - "a common virus that belongs to the ........ Read more »

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I was rather interested to read the paper by Michela Traglia and colleagues [1] (open-access available here) concluding that: "maternal and fetal genetic make-up are important determinants of mid-gestational maternal circulating levels of some environmental organohalogens." Interested because, in these days of gene-environment interactions being applied to just about everything, the detail that is missing - which genes might potentially be linked to which environmental factors - has not yet........ Read more »

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What IS that? A photo by Stefan Kraft at Wikimedia Commons.1. Platypuses are so strange, that when British scientists first encountered one, they thought it was a joke: A Governor of New South Wales, Australia, sent a platypus pelt and sketch to British scientists in 1798. Even in their first published scientific description of the species, biologists thought that this duck-beaked, beaver-bodied, web-footed specimen may be some Frankenstein-like creation stitched together as a hoax. But this is ........ Read more »

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I'd encourage readers interested in the background to the response paper by Michael Sharpe and colleagues [1] to have a look at a previous blogging occasion when the topic of the PACE trial, chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and 'recovery' were discussed (see here).Suffice to say that this latest paper is a reply to one published by Carolyn Wilshire and colleagues [2] who concluded that: "The claim that patients [with CFS] can recover as a result of CBT [cognitive behaviour therapy] ........ Read more »

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Meet the Moroccan flic-flac spider (Cebrennus rechenbergi), a truly unique spider that when provoked or threatened escapes by doubling its normal walking speed using forward or backward flips similar to acrobatic flic-flac movements used by gymnasts.

C. rechenbergi is a species of huntsman spider indigenous to Morocco and can be found in the sand dunes of the Erg Chebbi desert . The spider ... Read more »

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"While pregnant women should continue to avoid handling soiled cat litter, given possible T. gondii exposure, our study strongly indicates that cat ownership in pregnancy or early childhood does not confer an increased risk of later adolescent PEs [psychotic experiences]."So said the findings reported by Francesca Solmi and colleagues [1] (open-access) who brought a smile to any reader of the title of their paper: "Curiosity killed the cat: no evidence of an association between cat ownershi........ Read more »

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"In our cohort, high levels of antibodies to herpes simplex virus 2 at midpregnancy were associated with an elevated risk of autism spectrum disorder in male offspring. These findings provide support for the hypothesis that gestational infection may contribute to the pathogenesis of autism spectrum disorder and have the potential to drive new efforts to monitor women more closely for cryptic gestational infection and to implement suppressive therapy during pregnancy."That was the conclusion reac........ Read more »

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by Piter Kehoma Boll Charles Darwin had already noticed that small animals, such as those found in zooplankton, are widely distributed around the world, even those that are found in small ponds of freshwater. This seemed to go against the … Continue reading →... Read more »

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OK I'm a little confused right now.Not so long ago I talked about the paper from Horvath and colleagues [1] (see here) concluding that "the limited data currently available suggest that ω-3 FA [omega-3 fatty acid] supplementation does not enhance the performance of children with ASD [autism spectrum disorder]." Such a conclusion was based on the application of a systematic review and meta-analysis of the available peer-reviewed literature up to August 2016.Now however, another sy........ Read more »

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"A personal history and a maternal history of autoimmune disease were associated with an increased risk of ADHD [attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder]. The previously reported association between type 1 diabetes and ADHD was confirmed. In addition, specific parental autoimmune diseases were associated with ADHD in offspring."So said the study results published by Nielsen and colleagues [1] including "a study population of 983,680 individuals followed from 1995 to 2012." Reliant once aga........ Read more »

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Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer among women and one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide (1-3). It is a clinically heterogeneous disease, with at least 5 different subtypes (4) and quite variable prognosis, even within a subtype. In spite of early detection programmes, unfortunately 20-30% of early stage cases will eventually experience recurrence and develop distant metastasis. However, currently, there is no acceptable method for monitoring patients who are lik........ Read more »

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"In 3.5-year-old children, CDA [coeliac disease autoimmunity] is associated with increased reports of child depression and anxiety, aggressive behavior, and sleep problems when mothers are unaware of their child’s CDA status."So said the findings reported by Laura Smith and colleagues [1] (open-access available here) adding to an emerging body of peer-reviewed research suggesting that the archetypal 'gluten is the baddie' autoimmune condition known as coeliac disease might, when not manag........ Read more »

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"Mothers (OR 2.95, 95% CI 2.81-3.09) and fathers (OR 2.41, 95% CI 2.25-2.58) of children with ASD [autism spectrum disorder] were more likely to have a diagnosis of depression than parents of children without ASD."The paper by Cohrs and Leslie [1] is probably not going to win any awards for novelty when it comes to their findings that: "Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in children can have secondary effects on the child's parents." It does however represent another important piece of evidence........ Read more »

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"This study examined the effect of common mitochondrial treatments on specific mitochondrial components in a group of children diagnosed with ASD [autism spectrum disorder], some of which also were diagnosed with co-morbid mitochondrial disease."That was the premise of the study results published by Leanna Delhey and colleagues [1] (open-access available here) and follows previous discussions suggesting that mitochondrial disease might not be totally unfamiliar to at least some autism ........ Read more »

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by Piter Kehoma Boll One of the most iconic representations of praying mantids is that of a female eating the male after (or during) sex, an unpleasant scenario that starts with a beheading before the poor male even finishes his … Continue reading →... Read more »

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I'd like to briefly draw your attention to the results - systematic review and meta-analysis results - published by Joseph Firth and colleagues [1] observing that "certain vitamin and mineral supplements may reduce psychiatric symptoms in some people with schizophrenia" and specifically that certain B vitamins might be something to consider.Such results come from a research team who are making significant waves in the field of meta-analyses and systematic reviews for all manner of different [imp........ Read more »

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Previous studies show that BHD syndrome causes spontaneous pneumothorax (SP) in 24-38% of patients, with a recurrence rate of up to 75% (Toro et al., 2007; Toro et al., 2008; Houweling et al., 2011). A common preventative strategy used following an initial SP in patients with BHD is pleurodesis, however, its efficacy in preventing recurrent episodes is not well known. Due to the pressure changes during air travel, cystic air spaces expand and compress in the thorax possibly leading to cyst ruptu........ Read more »

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